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Domino (horse)
Encyclopedia
Domino was a 19th-century American
thoroughbred
race horse.
, Domino was sired by Himyar out of the mare Mannie Gray.Sam Hildreth
writes in his book, "The Spell of the Turf" that he looked black was actually a deep chestnut
. Himyar was out of speed horse called Alarm who'd inherited this speed from the great Eclipse
. Domino, who also inherited that speed, was foaled at Major Barak Thomas's Dixiana Farm
in Lexington, Kentucky
. What he did not have was stamina.
Owned by James R. Keene
, he was purchased as a yearling for $3,000 by his son, Keene. Domino was trained by William Lakeland and ridden by jockey
Fred Taral
whom Domino hated for his rough style and copious use of whip and spur.
.
At the age of two, he won the Great Eclipse Stakes, the Futurity Stakes, the Great American Stakes
, the Great Trial Stakes, the Hyde Park Stakes, the Matron Stakes and the Produce Stakes.
By now, people called him "The Black Whirlwind." About this time heats no longer dominated horse races in America (they'd fallen out of favor in England
decades earlier), and speed was becoming a premium. Domino was considered the fastest sprinter of his time.
, Domino defeated the Belmont Stakes
champion Henry of Navarre
, and went on to win five of the next seven races he entered including a dead heat
in a match race with arch rival Henry of Navarre. As such, they met again three weeks later in a race to determine the 1894 championship. For this event, the 4-year-old Clifford joined the two younger colts. This time, Henry of Navarre won by 3/4's of a length, earning Horse of the Year honors.
At three, besides the Withers, he won the Flying Stakes (carrying 130 pounds and setting a new track record), the Culver Stakes, the Ocean Handicap, and the Third Special.
, and came in 2nd in the Coney Island Fall Handicap carrying 133 lb., conceding 24 lb to the winner.
Slightly unsound, and always raced in bandages, still, in his 25 starts, Domino won 19, placed in 2, and came third in one. His life career earnings amounted to $193,550.
Eventually refusing to train due to a bad foot, at the end of the 1895 season, he was retired to Castleton Stud.
, who in turn sired a number of top horses one of whom was hall of famer
, Colin
. Today, many thoroughbred race horses trace their lineage to Domino.
in 1955. His owner had his headstone engraved: "Here lies the fleetest runner the American turf has ever known, and the gamest and most generous of horses."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
thoroughbred
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word thoroughbred is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed...
race horse.
Background
A dark brown, almost black*, coltColt (horse)
A colt is a young male horse, under the age of four. The term "colt" is often confused with foal, which refers to a horse of either sex under one year of age....
, Domino was sired by Himyar out of the mare Mannie Gray.Sam Hildreth
Sam Hildreth
Samuel Clay Hildreth was an American Thoroughbred horse racing Hall of Fame trainer and owner.Born in Independence, Missouri, Sam Hildreth began his training career in 1887, competing at racetracks in the Midwestern United States with such horses as the good racemare Hurley Burley, the dam of...
writes in his book, "The Spell of the Turf" that he looked black was actually a deep chestnut
Chestnut (color)
Chestnut, also known as Indian red, is a color, a medium brownish shade of red, and is named after the nut of the chestnut tree.As Indian red, it is named after the red laterite soil found in India. It is thus an earth tone as well as a red. It is composed of naturally occurring iron oxides. Other...
. Himyar was out of speed horse called Alarm who'd inherited this speed from the great Eclipse
Eclipse (horse)
Eclipse was an outstanding, undefeated 18th-century British Thoroughbred racehorse who was later a phenomenal success as a sire.-Breeding:...
. Domino, who also inherited that speed, was foaled at Major Barak Thomas's Dixiana Farm
Dixiana Farm
Dixiana Farm, founded in 1877, is an American Thoroughbred horse breeding farm in Lexington, Kentucky.-Barak G. Thomas:Formerly known as Hamilton Stud, Dixiana, owned by Barak G. Thomas, a Confederate soldier in the Civil War and later Sheriff of Fayette County, Kentucky, took the breeding world by...
in Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
. What he did not have was stamina.
Owned by James R. Keene
James R. Keene
James Robert Keene was a Wall Street stock broker and a major thoroughbred race horse owner and breeder.-Biography:He was born in London, England in 1838. He was fourteen years of age when his family emigrated to the United States in 1852...
, he was purchased as a yearling for $3,000 by his son, Keene. Domino was trained by William Lakeland and ridden by jockey
Jockey
A jockey is an athlete who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing.-Etymology:...
Fred Taral
Fred Taral
Fred Taral was an American Hall of Fame jockey.Taral began his career in racing in the 1880s at small racetracks in Oklahoma. By 1889 he was among the 24-member jockey colony at the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans and competed in his first Kentucky Derby...
whom Domino hated for his rough style and copious use of whip and spur.
1893: two-year-old season
Undefeated as a two-year-old, the horse won all nine races entered and was voted Champion Two Year Old colt and the 1893 Horse of the YearEclipse Award for Horse of the Year
The American Award for Horse of the Year is the highest honor given in American thoroughbred horse racing. It has been awarded since 1887 to the horse, irrespective of age, whose performance during the racing year is deemed the most outstanding....
.
At the age of two, he won the Great Eclipse Stakes, the Futurity Stakes, the Great American Stakes
Great American Stakes
The Great American Stakes is a defunct American Thoroughbred horse race last run annually at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. Open to two-year-old horses, it was last competed at a distance of five and a half furlongs....
, the Great Trial Stakes, the Hyde Park Stakes, the Matron Stakes and the Produce Stakes.
By now, people called him "The Black Whirlwind." About this time heats no longer dominated horse races in America (they'd fallen out of favor in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
decades earlier), and speed was becoming a premium. Domino was considered the fastest sprinter of his time.
1894: three-year-old season
In his first start at age three in the Withers StakesWithers Stakes
The Withers Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race for three-year-olds willing to compete one mile on the dirt. Held at Aqueduct Racetrack every year at the end of April , it is a Grade III event, and offers a purse of $150,000...
, Domino defeated the Belmont Stakes
Belmont Stakes
The Belmont Stakes is an American Grade I stakes Thoroughbred horse race held every June at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. It is a 1.5-mile horse race, open to three year old Thoroughbreds. Colts and geldings carry a weight of 126 pounds ; fillies carry 121 pounds...
champion Henry of Navarre
Henry of Navarre (horse)
Henry of Navarre was an American Hall of Fame Thoroughbred Champion racehorse. Sired by the 1884 Preakness Stakes winner Knight of Ellerslie he was named for the Huguenot king, Henry IV of France....
, and went on to win five of the next seven races he entered including a dead heat
Tie (draw)
To tie or draw is to finish a competition with identical or inconclusive results. The word "tie" is usually used in North America for sports such as American football. "Draw" is usually used in the United Kingdom, Ireland and the Commonwealth of Nations and it is usually used for sports such as...
in a match race with arch rival Henry of Navarre. As such, they met again three weeks later in a race to determine the 1894 championship. For this event, the 4-year-old Clifford joined the two younger colts. This time, Henry of Navarre won by 3/4's of a length, earning Horse of the Year honors.
At three, besides the Withers, he won the Flying Stakes (carrying 130 pounds and setting a new track record), the Culver Stakes, the Ocean Handicap, and the Third Special.
1895: four-year-old season
Raced as a four-year-old, Domino won four of eight races: the Coney Island Handicap, the Sheepshead Bay HandicapSheepshead Bay Handicap
Sheepshead Bay Stakes is an American Thoroughbred horse race run annually at the end of May at Belmont Park in Elmont, New York. A Grade II event contested on turf at a distance of 1 3/8 miles , it is open to fillies and mares, three-years-old and up...
, and came in 2nd in the Coney Island Fall Handicap carrying 133 lb., conceding 24 lb to the winner.
Slightly unsound, and always raced in bandages, still, in his 25 starts, Domino won 19, placed in 2, and came third in one. His life career earnings amounted to $193,550.
Eventually refusing to train due to a bad foot, at the end of the 1895 season, he was retired to Castleton Stud.
Stud career
Domino had produced only twenty foals when at age six (July 29, 1897) he died unexpectedly of spinal meningitis. Despite his short time as a sire, of Domino's twenty foals eight were stakes race winners, an incredible 42% rate versus the industry norm of just 3%. (Only four colts were not gelded.) Included among them was Caps and Bells, the first American-bred to win the English Oaks, and Belmont Stakes winner and two-time Horse of the Year CommandoCommando (horse)
Commando was an American Hall of Fame Champion Thoroughbred racehorse. Bred at Castleton Stud by owner James R. Keene, Commando raced at age two, winning five of his six starts and finishing second in the other as a result of jockey error. At age three, Commando raced only three times, winning the...
, who in turn sired a number of top horses one of whom was hall of famer
National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
, Colin
Colin (horse)
Colin was one of America's greatest Thoroughbred racehorses. He retired undefeated after 15 starts and as a sire appears in the pedigree of the champion racehorse, Alsab.-Pedigree:...
. Today, many thoroughbred race horses trace their lineage to Domino.
Honors
Domino was one of the first handful of horses inducted into the National Museum of Racing and Hall of FameNational Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame
The National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame was founded in 1950 in Saratoga Springs, New York, to honor the achievements of American thoroughbred race horses, jockeys, and trainers...
in 1955. His owner had his headstone engraved: "Here lies the fleetest runner the American turf has ever known, and the gamest and most generous of horses."